Copse and Spinney

Ever since I was a little girl, I loved cottages. In my early childhood, we lived in a rock cottage with a rounded door. It was built in the early 1900’s and it had a lot of nooks and crannies. There was a coy fish pond in the back built into a short rock wall. Beyond the back yard a mysterious forest of bamboo beckoned exploration by my brother and me. The side yard was covered in Texas Bluebonnets in the spring, in the winter, once it snowed so much, we built a large snow man there. It was my great grandmother’s home in the heart of Austin, and we lived there while building our hill country home.

Above, a photo of my Great Grandmother’s house in the 1930’s. (above)

Again in the 2000‘s.

Since then, I have been an admirer of stone pathways, cottage gardens, and older neighborhoods with established old trees. My mom and I would often take walks in that neighborhood and crack fallen pecans that we found along the sidewalk. Red River (more of a creek) ran through our neighborhood and my brother and I made excursions there to play.

When we moved into the country home, it wasn’t quite finished. It was dried in, but there were still finishing touches needed like hanging fixtures and sliding closet doors. I remember the day we got our carpet, which in my own room, it was a shag sage green! My mom decorated my room with things like Holly Hobbie and country patch quilts which were popular in the 1970’s. My parents paid for everything as they went and in the end, built the family home completely debt free.

We were doing the “Slow Living” cottage core dream, although no one called it that. We got a white goat named Agatha, and she provided the milk we drank every day. We grew a huge garden, and summer was filled with picking and canning green beans, squash and making pickles. We picked peaches at an orchard in Stonewall, Texas, and put them up. My dad tilled the garden, mom did the canning. My brother milked the goat, I took care of rabbits, chickens and quail (We raised quail for a time.) I am not trying to romanticize this life. It was work and at the time, I don’t think we appreciated it because it just felt normal, as we knew no other life.

We were so excited when our goat Agatha had a kid!

Now, I live in an apartment near where I’m currently working on my degree. But I still feel connected to cottage life and to the land. It’s something that runs deep in my veins because of my upbringing. So, in order to bring a cottage atmosphere into a small space, I want to share with you some things that I have done. Hopefully this will be an encouragement for those who are not yet in their forever home. Maybe someday, you want to live off the land, have farm animals, and grow your own food but because of school or other reasons, you are not in that season of life. There will be many different places you may stay for a while. Here is how I made my cottage dreams come alive in our little apartment.

First of all I am married to the sweetest guy who also likes cottages and nature. He spent a few years after getting his bachelors, helping native tribes in South America grow and garden, and introduced new plants that obtained better financial growth for the good of their local economy.

(Below -1994 in Bolivia, Kent helping the native tribes.)

He knows a thing or two about plants, so when I told him I wanted to start an herb garden, he was on board. I gathered plants, like lavender, rosemary, lemon thyme, mint, basil, parsley and oregano.

Then, placed them in staggered vintage pots near the walkway. The walk way was a feature that he already placed there before we were married. It is practical for the rainy days, but also bears a cottage aesthetic. Paving stones, amid a bed of pea gravel and surrounded by river rocks made an amazing improvement. And it feels very cottage core!

He was already in the habit of feeding birds, and hung a large bird feeder outside on the tree that had the best view from the window, and another near the pathway. The word must have spread to the neighboring bird families because at times there would be more than thirty birds in our tree. We paired back a bit, because the seed is rather pricey. But still put some out each day. In the past, we have had mallard ducks come for a visit, all kinds of song birds, geese squirrels and bunnies. (The bunnies love the grass that grows up from the uneaten seeds.)

At all times and seasons of the year we have visitors.

AMBIANCE

The inside of the home apartment has a good amount of natural lighting, due to windows, but we also use the smart home system to adjust the lighting and shades to make dim or change on a certain schedule that goes with our rest patterns and times of day. Adding to that, soft classical music that begins to play in the room around seven p.m. Smart technology may go against your idea of a cottage core life style, but think about it, if it helps create the mood and atmosphere you want, then feel free to embrace it. You are in control of what comes out of the speakers, so if it’s a Baroque piece written by Bach or a string quartet, then it only adds to the ambiance you are creating.

Apparently the musician and Bunny/nature lovers theme has been a thing for a lot longer than we’ve been here! Rabbits between the staves. Cambrai BM 125-128, c 1540-50, University of Galway (Posted by Archaeology Art)

APARTMENT DECOR

I am definitely a work in progress when it comes to order and decorating in a small space, and my tendency is to have too many pretties! My husband calls it “clutter-full”! But with an Etsy business on the side, and with seasonal changes I switch out my decor somewhat. Over the last year or two, I began to collect vintage items, with a “story book” look, such as classics like Beatrix Potter figurines, old world style rustic finds, dried flowers, herbs and Poppy seed pods. I make my own beeswax candles, and have even sculpted clay candle holders for a “Scandi-Christmas” vibe.

Sometimes I display classic story book themes mixed in with my Christmas or seasonal decor, such as recreating scenes from a Jan Brett story, The Mitten… or placing Little Red Riding Hood, just randomly peering from a dollhouse doorway.

My daughter said that this is me in Bunny form (below). I said “Yeah, I could see myself wearing that dress and carrying that purse!)

(Above) A Beatrix Potter Bunny, Brambly Hedge Jar, and a tiny bird with a nest and egss that my daughter created out of clay.

Handmade beeswax and soy candles poured into empty French yogurt Jars make a clean everyday use candle.

DECORATING FOR SEASONS

(Above) A Maileg Christmas Elf doll displayed with the story of “The Mitten” by Jan Brett, alongside my vintage nordic mitten. I like to take stories scenes from books and bring them “to life.” in my seasonal decor.

Critters, like mice, or Pinocchio, may be seen peeping from the top of a stocking hung at Christmas. (which look cute hung from backs of doors.) Natural fibers are a necessity! Durable linen is a timeless choice for bedding. Straw hats or French Market bags hang from a peg. Market bags are used for a purpose, like groceries, or maybe just to temporarily hide some stuff you are taking out to the car.

A vintage French Market basket with a bouquet of lavender is hung from a peg adjacent to Bunny art. (above)

My first attempt at making a Scandinavian style candler holder our of clay. (above)

TEA THINGS

Remember Maria Von Trapp singing about bright copper kettles, and warm woolen mittens? Vintage copper pots and pans are sought after by collectors for a reason. Not only are they great cookware but they bring a sense of warmth and add an inviting feeling to your home. Old pottery, and old wooden pieces add warm and a sense of old world charm to your every day life in an apartment or any home.

Pottery Tea Pot found on one of our vintage market trips.

Jemima Puddleduck, mug from the Story by Beatrix Potter

A cup of loose leaf tea steeped in a Brambly Hedge Mug with Illustration from the Stories by Jill Barklem (above)

We like making cookies using Vintage Stoneware Cookie Molds .

BAKING

A heart shaped cake fills the air with a sweet aroma. Bon Appétit!!

I tried my mom’s Apple Cake recipe… this was a staple in our house growing up. And the cinnamon apple aroma wafting through the air when I came home from school was nothing short of heavenly!

She mailed me the recipe in a post card, remembering to give credit to her friend who gave it to her in the 1970’s.

Storybooks and dollhouses are important feature in a cottage style home. Mice, birds, and bears live here.

A collection of Hogben Pottery mugs, hand made in UK make the perfect cottage core addition to kitchen decor.

Fresh flowers such as Hyacinth or roses make the best apartment therapy for a cottage style apartment. In a small spaces, you need ways to store your stuff! These cute vintage Longaberger baskets make great drawer and cabinet organizers!

Old wine crates make a nice transport for plants and garden items. I recently used this wooden box to carry all of my herbs before I transplanted. Here it is shown with gatherings from a lavender farm. Lavender fills the air with a nice soft scent that helps to ward off pet odor and keep your apartment fresh! We also, like to make our own lavender spray from essential oils and store them in blue glass bottles!

Lavender soap on pretty old French Limoges dish (above) adds an old world appeal.

Cottage Style decorating is a topic that I could stay on for many posts, so I don’t really know how to end this one, other than to say, “To be continued”! If you like this topic, please say so in the comments. And follow @copseandspinney on instagram.

I will leave you now with these final thoughts: One of the attributes of contentment is learning to love your space, be it big or small and enjoy life’s little joys! This feature started with Nanny’s house (below) which remains an inspiration in my mind and heart to this day!

Nanny’s House (circa 1990’s) Forever and Inspiration